The design concept of metering off the viewfinder - which necessitates all the zone and pre-flash nonsense is the root cause of the problem. At the point when the mirror and optical viewfinder are eliminated there will be a huge improvement in automatic exposure in large sensor cameras. The x-sync limit will also be a thing of the past.
A $200 P&S digital does a better job of automatic exposure than a $3,000 DSLR because the P&S which only has \"live view\" is continually dumping and displaying the sensor. That means it can evaluate every single pixel 30 or more times a second to determine if its under-exposed and adjust the camera settings in a real-time control loop.
My camera previous to the 20D was a 5MP Minolta D7Hi which had a EVF. Most of the scenic and bug shots I posted above were shot with it. It has a live histogram in the viewfinder and no flash sync limit. The reason I wound replacing my trust Vivitar 285HV flashes for the 580ex was because that camera, and its lack of x-sync limit spoiled me: I bought the 580ex primarily for the high-speed sync.
So if Canon produced a 1.6 or larger sensor camera with an EVF I\'d buy it in a heartbeat. It would no doubt be simpler to make and much less expensive. Granted an EVF is an acquired taste, but they\'ve been the norm for video since the inception of the camcorder.
Chuck
Dec 30, 2008 at 06:00 PM
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